Optima Ultimate Street Car Champion Corvette has Rich History (Video)

A few weeks ago in Pahrump, Nevada, the ultimate competition of arguably the greatest street cars in the world took place. A 1965 Corvette owned by one Brian Hobaugh proved victorious, taking the title of Optima Ultimate Street Car. But this Corvette isn’t just your cool run-of-the-mill fifteen-minutes-of-fame kind of deals. In September, a video was posted on the Drive YouTube channel explaining the significance behind the ’65’s story, its history, and its future.

Equipped with a 364 cubic-inch small-block powerplant, the Corvette cranks out 500 horsepower and 500 lb-ft of torque.

According to Mike Musto, who gives us the play-by-play as he test drives, the Corvette, “revs to 7500 and handles like it’s on a rail. It’s got 315’s all around – 315/30/18 – those are steamroller sized tires!”

But what is even cooler is the story behind the Corvette. Hobaugh’s father bought the car in 1984 after falling in love with autocross on a whim. It became a father-son bonding experience, which has led the two to race the car every single year since they bought it. That’s thirty years! But a new driver is about to grip the wheel as Hobaugh’s daughter is fifteen years-old and got her permit in October.

“She’s excited to get in this car and I’m excited, my dad is too. We’ll have three generations driving this car at the same time,” Hobaugh told the cameras.

Check out the video below for the full story on the Corvette, and congratulations on the win, Brian!